A Very Boothy Thanksgiving
by bailey80
Summary: Join Brennan as she tries to create the perfect holiday for her & Booth's extended family.  Spend the week with Parker, Hank, Max, Jared, Padme, Russ, Amy & their girls as they have A Very Boothy Thanksgiving.  :  Will post a chapter a day until Thursday.
1. Of Turkey Dinners & Breast Pumps

This story arose out of a conversation about holiday traditions that I had with Rynogeny & Frankie while also watching The Dentist in the Ditch. I have to thank both of them for all their help in getting this story written. Set in season seven canon, in so much as BB are together and expecting their first child, these are my musings on what a Thanksgiving meal with the entire (that we've met) Booth & Brennan clan would look like. No intentional spoilers pass the episode three of season seven, if I allude to an aspect that hasn't yet been addressed on the show, it's just my guess. I realize that canon doesn't really define what age Parker is, but I assume he'd be around ten or eleven this season. I plan to post one chapter a day between now and Thanksgiving. Enjoy!

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"Booth can you pass me the butter?" Brennan was standing at the stove, working to perfect her mashed potato recipe, while her partner (well more than partner now but she had yet to find a word that properly described their new relationship) was hanging at the edge of the kitchen, straining to hear the football game he had on in the other room.

With a sigh, that he sincerely hoped she hadn't heard Booth jogged toward the refrigerator to retrieve her butter. "Bones you really need to stop stressing out about this and just enjoy the day." This was take three on the potatoes. She had decided that her first attempt was too clumpy, her second too salty. Booth had thought both had been just fine. In fact he thought every dish she made was downright amazing. The lady could cook. As he looked around the room at all the pots, pans, and other dishware he wondered if she were planning on feeding their families for one meal or Washington's army for the entire winter.

"You can enjoy the day. I have to ensure that everything is done correctly." He moved to stand behind her, kneading the knots out of her shoulders with his hands. She had come to appreciate his hands, in many more ways than one. He had come to appreciate the sight of her standing in their kitchen wearing yoga pants and one of his oversized Flyers t-shirts, as she was now.

"You don't have to fix a perfect meal, quit putting so much pressure on yourself."

"I don't see the point in hosting a Thanksgiving dinner in our home if I don't adequately prepare." Almost as an afterthought, albeit an anxious one, she exclaimed, "Did you remember to pick up the wreath I ordered?"

"Yes I did, calm down." He actually had remembered to retrieve the decoration, even if he really wasn't sure why it meant so much to her. Looking around their new house, at the fall tablecloth she had adorned their table with, the large centerpieces and the dozens of precisely placed candles. He smiled at the memory of a Temperance Brennan who didn't see the point of celebrating holidays. Let alone on wasting time and energy on "frivolous decorations." A lot can change in seven years.

"Can you go get it please?" Her irritated request interrupted his daydream and he smiled. He leaned down to swipe his hand through the pie filling that she had in a bowl on the countertop.

"Booth, that is very unsanitary," her face scrunched up in disapproval of his childish action.

"But it's my favorite Bones." Booth took great pride that not only had Brennan now starting eating pies but she had also learned how to bake them. She made a mean strawberry pie. He was in mid lick of the filling when he decided to share with her. But, as Booth turned to allowed her access to the strawberry deliciousness on his finger, she moved just enough that the red, sticky mess ended up on her nose instead.

Out of instinct Brennan countered his action by rubbing her hand against the side of his face. Her hand that had became coated with stray mashed potatoes as she stirred.

"Hey, mine was an accident. You did that on purpose."

"I did not Booth and you cannot prove differently."

"Yes, I can. See Bones, this," he pointed toward her nose, which was still sporting the red filling, "was an accident." He stuck his hand into a chocolate mixture nearby, "this is on purpose." He darted from the room as he flung the dessert toward her, globs of chocolate landing in her eyes and hair.

"Booth!" she grabbed her own handful of chocolate icing and took off down the hall toward him.

She had just caught up with him outside of their bedroom door, both of them laughing, when the doorbell rang. "Saved by the bell," Booth exclaimed as he freed himself from her grasp.

With a menacing smile Brennan used both her cake icing filled hands to cover his face with chocolate before walking away with a casual, "Oh, no, I'll get it."

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Brennan was still wiping the excess chocolate off her face with a hand towel when she opened the door. If Rebecca noticed the clump of icing in her hair, she didn't mention it.

"Hey Bones, what's wrong with your hair?" Parker on the other hand, was not as subtle.

"Your father and I were just playing."

Rebecca raised her eyebrows at the comment but decided against commenting. She didn't care to know any details of her ex's relationship with the scientist. They seemed happy and she could trust her with Parker. That was enough.

Booth overheard Brennan's response and came racing back into the room to try and stop the conversation before any misunderstanding could take place. His own chocolate covered face was just more incriminating evidence. "We had a food fight," he was almost out of breath as he blurted out his excuse.

"It's okay Seeley, I assume the two of you have sex," Rebecca pointed a finger toward Brennan's widened mid-section, "that's usually how that happens."

"Booth doesn't like to talk about our sex life outside of the bedroom. I mean, we've certainly had sex outside of the bedroom, in the living room, the bathroom and once at the lab"

"Bones, stop it," Booth was flustered and more than a little concerned about Rebecca's reaction.

"Parker is back in his bedroom, he can't hear me."

"We really were having a food fight," Booth insisted and finally Brennan backed up his story, which Rebecca did not have any problem believing.

"You're both fully dressed, you're expecting company and there's mashed potatoes on your shoes Seeley."

Brennan offered him the towel to wipe up the stray potatoes. "See, you worry too much. Booth even thinks that you are mad about the manner in which I handled Parker's questions about the baby."

"Yes, Parker told me that Seeley got upset after the two of you had a conversation about where babies come from."

"Bones didn't mean to give him so much," he paused searching for the perfect word, "information. She had good intentions, she just went too far. I meant to call and apologize," he rumbled on further until he finally noticed the smile spreading across Rebecca's face. "What's wrong? Are you laughing?"

Brennan shared a knowing smile with Rebecca, "I think she is Booth."

"You don't, wait, you're not upset?"

"No, Seeley, you don't give Parker enough information," she mimicked the way he had said the word. "He told me what he discussed with Temperance, he isn't confused at all."

"He's not confused because she told him everything."

"I didn't go into details of the how Booth, I just explained the scientific processes involved."

"He didn't know the word sperm before you talked to him Bones."

"He's old enough. I think we should thank Temperance. I don't think I could've had that conversation with Parker, and I know you couldn't have. He told me about the time you tried. He was very confused about what exactly birds and pollen had to do with getting milk."

"What exactly did you say to him Booth?"

Rebecca laughed, "Face it Seeley, you are a very good father but you sucked at trying to have the sex talk with Parker. Dr. Brennan made it very bland and clinical and didn't leave him any room to misunderstand anything that he'll have to pick up on the streets."

"I don't think either you or Booth will ever let Parker be alone on the streets."

"You are still very literal I see. Do you plan to breast feed?"

"Yes, I believe it is the best option for the baby. Did you breast feed Parker?"

"I did. Actually I was going to offer you some of the things I used with Parker, a nursing pillow, my breast pump -"

Booth interrupted her with an exasperated sigh as he collapsed on the arm of the chair in their foyer.

Rebecca and Brennan shared an eye roll at Booth's antics then Rebecca continued, "I know they're old but the technology hasn't changed much, so if you want them I'll bring them over."

"Yeah, of course that'd be great. I mean, financially I am able to purchase my own but I have no idea which brand is best so if you thought yours was sufficient I'd be glad to accept them."

"Bones," Parker's voice bellowed through the house as he ran back toward the adults, who hadn't made it past the front door.

"Yes, Parker, is something wrong?"

"No, I was just wondering how long it's going to be before we eat? I'm starving."

"Parker you just ate."

"I'm still hungry."

"We won't be having dinner for quite a while Parker, not until all of our guests arrive but I picked up those meaty snacks that you said you liked."

"Awesome." Parker raced back off toward the kitchen.

Booth took Parker's interruption as a way of turning the conversation away from breasts and onto getting Rebecca on her way. "Becks, don't you have somewhere to be?"

"We're going to Brent's sister's house in Pennsylvania."

"Well you'd hate to be late," Booth got up from the chair and began to physically lead her back out the door.

"Booth, why are you trying to rush her? We're having a very nice conversation."

"Yeah, I don't actually want the two of you to bond."

"He's right. Brent is waiting in the car. I'll text you Temperance."

"No, no texting."

Rebecca laughed, "I'm leaving." She held up her hands in mock surrender then noticed her son walking back into the room, having retrieved his snack. "Parker have fun, be good."

Parker gave his Mom a quick hug and Brennan called after her as she walked out of the door, "Happy Thanksgiving Rebecca and thanks for the breast pump."

As Booth finally managed to get the door closed behind Rebecca, Parker asked "What's a breast pump?" between bites of his beef jerky.

"Do not answer that," Booth gave Brennan a stern look before turning to Parker, "You never actually need to know the answer to that. Let's go see what the score is. That's what men do on Thanksgiving."

Much to Booth's delight, Parker accepted this distraction.


	2. Booth Family Traditions

"Something smells good in here," Hank exclaimed as he walked into the kitchen.

Brennan hadn't seen Booth's grandfather since the day they had told him about the baby, five months ago. Every time they made plans to visit something would come up. The three of them had a busy schedule to navigate with all the murder, mayhem, Parker's sporting outings and Hank needing to crochet with his lady friend. Brennan smiled at the sight of the man she'd quickly bonded with and left the stove to hug him.

"You sure are a lot bigger than the last time I saw you Temperance."

"Of course I am. My uterus has expanded considerably to accommodate the size of the growing baby."

"Pregnancy suits you well sweetheart. You're glowing."

"It's just a myth that pregnant women glow Hank. It's simply an increase in estrogen and a higher volume of blood."

"Maybe being happy with my grandson is causing the glow then."

"I find I am quite happy these days, although there is no direct correlation to happiness and skin tone."

Hank shook his head he could always count on Temperance being rational. "I'm glad shrimp finally got his head screwed on straight."

"Booth's head has always been oriented correctly," her squished up face caused Hank to laugh out loud.

Confused but unconcerned by his outburst, Brennan turned back to the dish she was stirring on the stove and Hank followed her, peering over her shoulder as he asked, "So, what's for dinner?"

As he looked around the room he thought that maybe the better question would've been "what isn't for dinner?" Nearly every surface of the large kitchen was covered with dishes in various stages of completion. Hank had to hand it to her Temperance Brennan never did anything halfway. He decided not to ask how the chocolate stains got on the cabinets.

"I have the traditional turkey with gravy and stuffing. There are cranberries. Which Booth says are very important for Thanksgiving. I prepared a grain roast for myself as I do not eat meat. There are also several casseroles and various vegetables and breads."

"It looks like you have every dessert known to man," Hank was eyeing the lineup of pies and cakes and some chocolate concoction that he couldn't quite put his finger on. Although it looked like it was inviting him to a taste test.

"I seriously doubt that Hank. But I did want to be thorough. I've only cooked one holiday meal before and then I had the guests bring a dish of their own. And there weren't as many people attending either."

She didn't add that she had also never cared about the outcome nearly as much before either. Brennan hadn't been a part of a true family in years and this was the first time she'd been in charge of a family holiday. She had vivid recollections of her Mother preparing holiday meals for the four of them and of days were life was just easy and everything went the way that it should. Besides, family meant everything to Booth and she needed him to know that she could make this work. Letting him down today was not an option for her: a dinner, in their home with their families. It was the first time they'd entertained together and much was riding on this. But it was family and she assumed that meant some measure of perfection would be inherent. Her first sign that something was amiss came as Hank continued to scan the dishes she was cooking.

"Hey, where's the cornbread pudding?"

"I don't know what that is."

"Oh you can't have a Thanksgiving dinner without cornbread pudding."

Panic momentarily seized Brennan, how could she have the perfect Thanksgiving if she neglected to fix a traditional Booth family dish? The main problem being that she had no idea what cornbread pudding actually was. "Do you have a recipe?"

Hank pointed to his head, "It's all up here. My Mother used to make this every year, then my wife. Not sure why I never really made this for the boys."

She calmed down when she realized that the dish hadn't been a part of Booth's childhood tradition. She still wanted to please Hank by honoring the memory of his wife. "I'd love to revive your tradition Hank. What do we need?"

"Well corn, whole and creamed. And we'll need sour cream and muffin mix-"

Brennan was already searching through the cabinets as Hank rattled the ingredient list from memory. "I don't have any muffin mix."

"So we'll send shrimp to the store to pick some up."

Brennan was already ahead of him and called for Booth so loudly that Hank adjusted the volume on his hearing aids. Booth rushed into the room, alarmed by the tone of her voice and was relieved when she told him what she needed.

"Pops, while we're gone, you need to try some of Bones' pie. I swear it's better than Aunt Beth's."

"I don't think so."

Brennan didn't have a clue who Aunt Beth was and she hoped that there wasn't going to be another guest today. She had the menu worked out for exactly eleven. Allowing room for the notoriously glutton men on both sides of the family. "It's very good Hank."

"We'll just see about that."

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It was barely after three when the doorbell rang again. Brennan had told her guests to be there by five and was only expecting Hank to be early. She wasn't exactly surprised when she opened the door to find her father standing there. The duffel bag at his feet however, caught her a little off guard.

"Nice wreath," he pointed at the decoration that Booth had just finished hanging for her a little earlier. "Why do you have it hanging sideways?"

Brennan's eyes widened at the sight of the otherwise perfect wreath hanging lopsided on the front door. She instinctively tilted her head to the side in an effort to make it appear straightened. Before she could comment Booth came running toward her, tool box in hand. "I got it Bones. See, it just needs a little adjustment." Booth added, "Hey Max," almost as an afterthought. It wasn't that Booth wasn't pleased to see that the ex-con had arrived it was more that he was terrified by the look of disapproval in Brennan's eyes at the sight of the wreath.

"That should've been fixed when you first placed it Booth."

"Well, someone sent me on a last minute run to the store and I may have gotten side tracked."

"That is a valid point."

Max and Brennan moved to get out of the doorway and let Booth finish his job. He rubbed Brennan's belly and said, "So that's my granddaughter in there huh?" Off her nod he continued to talk, "I have so much to teach you."

"I'm not sure Booth would agree that you would be the best influence on our child."

For his credit, if Booth could hear their conversation he was pretending that he couldn't.

Max grabbed her left hand in his and studied it closely. "No ring?"

"Dad," Brennan did not hide the exasperation in her voice.

"Just making an observation, that's all."

Booth finally finished securing the wreath to the door and walked back into the room. "She doesn't have a ring because I'm waiting on her to propose to me."

"That sounds fair. And what are you waiting on Tempe?"

"I do not wish to have this conversation today."

"Booth loves you honey, I've known that for a very long time. And so have you. Don't you trust him?"

"Of course I trust him Dad," Brennan's eyes were cast toward the floor and Max could see that she was beginning to zone out of the conversation and into her happy, rational place.

"Okay, okay, no arguing today. It's a day to be thankful for what we have. And I am very thankful that you and Booth are together now. And that we're all going to spend this day together. And for whatever smells so great."

"Hard to narrow that down, she's making enough to feed the District in there," the old man extended his hand, "Hank Booth, you must be Temperance's father."

"Yes. Max Keenan, nice to meet you."

As he watched his grandfather exchange pleasantries with Bones' Dad, something sitting at Max's feet caught Booth's attention. "Max, what's with the bag?"

Booth quickly added, "I mean, it's so good to see you," after realizing how rude his original comment had been. Of course, that realization had come in the form of a well placed back hand to the chest by the future Mother of his child.

"Dad, why don't you and Hank go watch the football game with Parker? Booth and I are going to finish working on dinner. We still have an hour or so before everyone else gets here."

Booth whined as she took his hand and pointed them both in the direction of the kitchen, "But I want to watch the game too."

"You said you'd help me."

"We really need to put a TV in the kitchen. You said we could."

The two men could hear their bickering continue even as they walked out of the room and back into the hall.

Hank laughed and shook his head, "I love those kids."

"They really are a matched set, aren't they?" Hank didn't need to answer; the sound of laughter and clanking dishes from the other room told them everything they needed to know.

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During halftime of the game Parker asked "Grandpa Max", a moniker that Max had insisted he use much to Booth's dismay, if he wanted to see his new bedroom. Having gotten his own tour earlier, Hank wandered into the kitchen to ask his grandson a question that had been on his mind since he had learned about the impending arrival of his great-granddaughter.

"So shrimp, when are you two getting married?"

"As soon as she asks me to Pops," Booth was using a piping bag to place icing around the edge of Brennan's chocolate cake while she changed into a nicer outfit for dinner. And washed the chocolate icing out of her hair.

"That's not the way it usually works."

"I've not had much luck with proposals in the past. Bones knows that I'm not going to ask her."

"That doesn't seem very fair to Temperance."

"I can't take the chance that she'll say no. Besides Pops, she knows that I want to get married, it's not like I've left her thinking that I don't want to be with her."

"But you're willing to wait? For how long? What if she never asks?"

"Oh, she'll ask."

"Is she going to give you a ring?"

"If she asks, then I'll go get her a ring," Booth finished icing the cake and walked to the sink to rinse his hands. "Besides, Bones isn't materialistic at all. She'd be fine without a ring."

"I brought you one."

"You brought me an engagement ring?"

Hank pulled a blue velvet ring box out of his pocket and handed it to Booth. "I gave this to your grandmother the day I got back from Korea. I couldn't bear to bury it with her and I've kept it. I'd like you to give this to Temperance."

"Pops, I -"

"She's the one son. We both know it. And so does Temperance."

"So does Temperance what?"

The men turned to see Brennan walk back into the room, now dressed much less casually, wearing a skirt and dress top, with a curious look on her face. Hank took the ring out of the box and handed it to her.

"What is this?"

"It belonged to my grandmother," Booth answered for Hank.

"And I want you to have it. But Seeley here tells me he's waiting on you to propose?"

"I, uh, this is beautiful." Her hands were shaking as she held the ring. It was a fourteen karat white gold band with a transitional cut diamond. A very typical 1950's style ring although there was nothing typical about the emotional attachment it held for Hank. It went well with her Grandmother's ring that she had worn since being reunited with her father. The setting was less than half a carat and much smaller and less flashy than the ring that Booth had given to Hannah. But the sentiment attached was worth millions. "You don't want me to have this Hank."

"Yes, I do. It's not doing me any good in the back of my closet. If you wear it, then I can see it."

"But this is a family heirloom, I-"

"You're part of our family, like it or not. There's a reason that I haven't offered this to Seeley before you know."

"Thank you Hank," finding that she was unable to form words she pulled Booth's grandfather in for a tight hug instead.

"I'm not trying to pressure you, but I've told you before that you don't want to have any regrets."

"I don't Hank, not anymore. I'm just not convinced that we have to be married right now. Our lives are already changing very fast."

"Are you saying that you will be there one day Bones?"

"Yes, I will. I promise. I'm sorry that I'm not there yet. I love you so much. I just-"

"It's okay Bones, I know. I love you too." He pulled her into an embrace and was leaning in to kiss her when their intimate moment was broken as they both caught sight of a curious Hank watching them.

"Well go ahead and kiss her shrimp, what're you looking at me for?"


	3. Our Dysfunctional Family Dinner

_Author's Note: Thanks for all the reviews/alerts/and favorites, you guys have made my week. I love that some of you are looking forward to this each day. I would like to thank NatesMama1128 for the suggestion of using cornbread pudding as the traditional Booth family dish. Like Brennan, I had no idea what this was before a couple of weeks ago. Since then I've made it for a Thanksgiving dinner and it was wonderful! _

_Thanks again for reading ... it's finally time for dinner. _

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Jared and Padme arrived at exactly five, which cut the time just close enough that Brennan was nearly panicked. Russ and his family arrived at five twenty, which had officially sent her into a tailspin.

When the doorbell finally rang, she answered it, ushering her brother and his family inside while delivering a lecture she'd been crafting as she'd sat staring at the clock and worrying about the temperature of her meal. "Russ, five means five. Actually by most cultural norms, an invitation for five means four thirty. A fact that also seems lost on Booth's brother."

"It's good to see you too Tempe."

"There's my granddaughters," Max appeared from behind Brennan making a desperate attempt to diffuse the tension between his children seem almost effortless, "Amy don't you look beautiful." He patted Russ on the back, cheek kissed his daughter-in-law, and pulled a quarter out from behind Emma's ear all before Brennan was able to continue her tirade.

"It's just dinner Bones," Booth whispered into her ear as he squeezed her shoulders. "I think you've frightened your nieces."

Brennan began to send him a puzzled look before she realized that her nieces were in fact clinging rather tightly to the arms of their mother. She sighed, "I apologize. I was just expecting you much earlier. I have gone to great lengths to make the first family celebration in our home a memorable one, and I did not expect your tardiness."

"Trust me that counts as an apology," Max grinned. "Ok, what do you say we all go eat?"

"Do we have assigned seats?" Russ mumbled as they were lead toward the dining room by Max.

"Of course we do, why would you ask that?"

Booth mouthed "hormones" in response to Russ' anguished look. As they walked to the dining room Booth recalled the conversation he'd had with Brennan while she made out the seating chart.

"_You have yourself at the head of the table Bones," Booth sat beside her on the couch and peaked at her screen as she stared intensely at her laptop._

"_Yes, I know."_

"_But, typically the man sits at the head of the table."_

"_That's an antiquated ritual Booth that assumes that the man is the head of the household. We've agreed that neither of us are the symbolic "head" of our home."_

"_Then why do you get to sit there?"_

"_Someone has to. Perhaps we can each sit at the ends of the table."_

"_But I want to sit next to you," Booth waggled his eyebrows toward her._

"_Yes, I might need the support," Brennan was nervous about the upcoming day and she preferred to be sitting as close to Booth as possible as she made small talk with their families. She concentrated for a minute then erased her own name on the seating chart and replaced it with her father's._

"_Whoa, you can't let Max sit there."_

"_Why not?"_

"_He'll think it means way more than it does."_

"_Some cultures insist that the oldest members of the tribe always sit at the head of the table during meals. We'll seat Dad at one end and Hank at the other."_

_Booth studied her chart again reaching out to shake her hand, "Deal." He yanked on her hand and pulled her into his lap._

"_Booth," Brennan yelled as she saved her laptop from being dumped off the couch._

"_What?" He feigned innocence as he captured her lips with his own._

The rest of the seating chart had been easier. She seated herself and Booth beside of Hank, with Jared and Padme on his other side, and Russ and Amy were sitting near Max. The kids were resigned to the breakfast nook, just close enough to hear the conversation but far enough way that they didn't have to listen either.

The main table was already set with beautiful white gold place settings that Cam and Paul had bought the couple as a housewarming gift a month earlier. The matching silverware was a gift from Hodgins and Angela, and Brennan had purchased two autumn themed center pieces to finish the festive look. The kid's table was set with the same dishes and covered with a brown table cloth. Parker had helped Brennan gather the prettiest leaves from the backyard to spread around the corner table. They had made a turkey out of construction paper the last weekend that Parker had stayed with them and that was being used as the centerpiece for the smaller table.

Most of the food was already on the table as they led Russ and his family into the room, with only a few dishes left to be brought out. As Brennan seated the new arrivals, Booth went into the kitchen to retrieve the turkey. He presented it to the group with a flourish.

"That's the biggest turkey I've ever seen," Parker exclaimed as he poked his head above the half wall that separated the two seating areas.

"That looks delicious Temperance," Hank's compliment making Brennan a bit less nervous about the bird. She was confident in her cooking ability but as a vegetarian, she had no idea if the centerpiece of her meal would be up to the standards of the meat eaters in the room.

"Before we eat, I'd like us all to join hands and have a moment of silence. I'd prefer we pray but we compromised," Booth smiled at Brennan. They hadn't discussed the matter and she was happy that he remembered their arrangement from a meal they'd had with their friends a few years before.

After a moment of silent reflection, and prayer for some of the group, Brennan went to grab the last dish from the kitchen and the guests began to fill their plates.

"With the size of this place I'd assume we'd have a butler here to serve us," Jared snaked to his brother.

"How much did this place cost anyway?" Russ had been marveling over the size of the house ever since they had pulled up and seen the large colonial home that his sister and Booth had recently purchased.

"Just barely two million," Brennan answered casually as she sat down a giant bowl of mashed potatoes.

"Bones, we talked about that, we agreed not to discuss how much we paid for the house."

"You mean how much Temperance paid, don't you brother?"

"Actually Jared, Booth and I are a couple, and as a couple, we have decided to share our earnings equally."

"So Seeley is sharing his eighty thousand a year with you and you're splitting your millions with him? That seems fair," Jared smirked.

Booth and Russ both started to speak to diffuse the situation and Max's eyebrows were raised defensively but Brennan spoke first, "While it is technically true that most of the money we used to buy the house came from the sell of my books, Booth is the literal representation of the fictional Andy. Therefore I was able to convince him that he is as entitled to the money as I am. And it affords Parker and our daughter a nice home, I do not see what you find fault with Jared."

Jared wasn't quite done messing with his brother but Padme kicked him under the table as soon as he started to speak. She was wearing high heeled boots, and her kick was quite effective at shutting him up. "Your house is beautiful. As is your son Seeley. And congratulations by the way."

"So, Jared would you like that butler now, or can you reach the beans yourself?"

Jared nodded his head in a show of goodwill. "I was just giving you a hard time brother. I'm very happy for the both of you."

"This turkey is delicious Tempe," Russ eyed Booth's brother suspiciously. He might be able to pick on his socially awkward little sister but he wasn't going to sit there and let someone else tease her.

"You can thank Booth and Dad for that they did all the taste testing. Dad was early you know, like a good guest."

"All right, sis, just drop it. I lost track of time, it isn't a federal crime."

"You'd know," Brennan said through strained teeth.

"He'd know about being a criminal?" Padme obviously was not well versed in Brennan family history.

"Yes, both my brother and father have spent time in prison."

Russ looked over at the kids' table where his girls sat, deep in conversation with Parker, seemingly unaware of the conversation, "Keep your voice down, there's little ears around."

"I'm sorry," She carefully lowered the volume of her voice but kept speaking. "Actually Booth has previously arrested both my father and my brother."

"Doesn't that cause complications?"

"Nah, no hard feelings, right Booth?" Max grinned, he had always like Booth, even when they were squarely on opposite sides of the law.

"None at all Max, and hey, you were acquitted."

"Acquitted of what exactly?"

"Murder of the deputy director of the FBI," Brennan answered while wiping her mouth.

"Seeley arrested you for murder even though you were innocent? And there aren't any hard feelings?" Padme wasn't sure what was shocking her more, their story or how casual they were being while they talked.

"Oh, no, I did it. He had every right to arrest me."

"You killed someone?" Her voice was louder than she intended, and the entire table glanced toward the children to ensure that they hadn't overheard. All three kids seemed rather engrossed in their meals so the adults continued.

"He deserved it. Hank, can you pass me those yams?"

"You're just going to admit that?"

"Well jeopardy is attached now, Dad can't be retried," Brennan didn't even look up as she buttered her roll.

Padme looked to Jared for help but he just shrugged. Glancing around the table no one seemed particularly upset about the conversation and when she caught Amy's eye she thought she'd finally found an ally. As Amy began to recount the story in more detail to rescue a confused Padme from her obvious distress the children were having their own conversation.

"They think I don't know about all that," Parker told the girls.

"It was on the news," Haley didn't seem concerned about having a Grandpa who had been in prison. "We saw him on there all the time."

"Yeah, I saw it too; I think it's kinda cool."

"Yep. Grandpa Max is pretty funny."

"So he's your Grandpa too?" Parker was surprised to hear Emma call Max by the same name that he had been instructed to use. In their haste to get to dinner, no one had bothered to inform the children of how they were connected to one another. They spent a moment thinking and looking back at the adults before realization dawned on Parker, "Oh." He explained it to the girls, and none of them would ever give it a second thought.

Back at the adult table Brennan decided that she wanted to give a toast. She raised her water glass and stood to get everyone's attention.

"Several years ago, soon after I was reunited with Dad and Russ, I lost them again. At that moment I really didn't think I'd ever have a relationship with either of them. That maybe I was just not one of the lucky people who gets to be part of family. But Booth told me that there was more than one type of family. And over and over again he would prove to me that, that was true. But now, looking around this room, I realize that I am one very lucky person. I still have the friends who became my family and got me through that difficult time in my life. And I've gotten my own family, who I thought I had lost forever, back. Now, I also have Booth's family and together we are building our own." She smiled toward Parker, who had left the kiddie table and was leaning against his father.

"And I get to be a brother," Parker added earning smiles from everyone at the table.

"Wow Tempe, now that was a good toast," Jared laughed.

"Yes, it was, and I forgot to mention that our family even has its proverbial black sheep. Jared."

"Tempe," Max admonished.

"It's okay Max, trust me, you don't want to know the whole story," Booth pulled on Brennan's hand to encourage her to sit down.

"Yes, it's probably best to just let sleeping dogs nap."

Amongst the laughter that filled the table at her almost accurate attempt at a colloquium, Padme raised her eyebrows toward her husband. He sent a nervous smile back in her direction. That would be a conversation to be had on a particularly tense ride back to her family's home in Virginia.


	4. It's Called L Trytophan

"I've thought about having a baby. Does the sex change much while you're pregnant?"

"I find that Booth is quite adequate at meeting all my sexual needs, maybe even more so now. Although the pregnancy came shortly after we embarked on a sexual relationship. My libido seems to be increasing as my pregnancy progresses and he is more than capable at keeping up. Booth is a very generous lover."

"Jared can be. But he has times that he's all about him."

"Oh, they all do that," Amy said as she placed a plate in the dishwasher. Brennan had insisted that Booth was more than capable of helping her instead but her sister-in-law told her it was more about having time for girl talk than assigning gender roles to chores.

"Not Booth. I mean, not my Booth."

Amy and Padme exchanged glances and mutually decided to move on in the conversation. Padme had a question she'd been wanting to ask for a while any way. Although the answer wasn't nearly as exciting as she'd hoped.

"Why don't you call him Seeley?"

"Because that's not who he is to me. He's always been Booth; I don't imagine that will ever change. I think that I would be quite upset if he started calling me Temperance."

Even if Padme found the situation strange, she couldn't argue with Brennan's rational answer. "This is fun, Jared and I move a lot with his job, I don't have many girlfriends, I miss this."

"Me too, all my girlfriends are other Moms who bore me."

"I have friends with whom I quite enjoy spending time. Although I find that I'm enjoying the company of the two of you today as well."

"You know what we should do? We should go shopping tomorrow," Amy was planning on taking advantage of a buy one get one half off sale on laptops.

"Oh, yes, Black Friday sales, that would be so much fun."

"What's Black Friday?"

"Seriously?"

Brennan shook her head wondering why Amy would assume that she was joking.

"It's the media's term for the sales that department stores have the day after Thanksgiving," Padme finished rinsing a cup and began to dry it, "People go crazy in the stores, They open at ridiculous hours, some at midnight. People wait in line for hours, then fight over the year's newest toys."

"Why would I want to participate in such a ritual?"

"Some of the best deals of the holiday season can only be gotten on Black Friday," Amy had long been a believer in bargain hunting.

"I have lots of money; I don't have to worry about sales. I can loan you money if you are going to go to these lengths to save."

Amy could see that Brennan wasn't quite grasping the appeal of the day after Thanksgiving holiday, "It's not about the money, it's about the experience."

"The experience of waking at 3am to fight with strangers in a mall over presents that I can order online? I think I'd prefer sleeping in instead."

"We can still go?" Padme suggested.

Brennan may not have taken part in the First Annual Girls Black Friday, but they'd eventually get her to go, a few years later when her daughter was mesmerized by a rapping Elmo doll after seeing a particularly colorful commercial on television. Although Brennan saw no practical purpose to the toy, she nonetheless found herself obsessed with obtaining it.

She would begin to reap the benefits of the practice though this Thanksgiving as her sisters-in-law returned to her home on Friday evening with a trunk full of gifts for the yet to be born Baby Booth. Brennan feigned surprise and wishes that they hadn't gone to so much trouble at first, but then she'd seen the pack of bibs they'd purchased. One bared the saying, "Daddy's Girl" and her heart melted. She eagerly tore through the rest of the bags of clothing and toys for her daughter, all pretenses forgotten.

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After the dishes were put into the dishwasher, the table cleared, and the girls finished with their girl talk, they walked to where the men were watching the game in the other room.

They found them sprawled out along the various couches and chairs in the family room. Max and Hank had claimed the matching recliners, Booth had taken his usual "spot" on the end of their sectional sofa that was closest to the kitchen and Jared was sitting on the other end of the couch his long legs stretching well across the floor toward the television. Russ had somehow ended up lying in the floor in front of the stone fireplace. Snoring was coming from various directions, almost as if in stereo.

"Hmmm, I thought they were going to watch football," Brennan took in the rather sedate appearance of the men.

"They've been watching football all day," Amy said as she stepped over her husband to admire a picture of Booth and Brennan that was sitting on the mantel. "Are they all asleep?"

"There is a chemical in turkey that causes drowsiness, and they all certainly ate plenty of it," Padme made excuses for them.

"Actually that has been widely disproven. Although I suppose with the long standing notion in place, it could have some sort of placebo effect," Brennan's response caused the other ladies to nod, they already knew better than to argue with her.

Instead Padme asked, "How long are they going to do that?"

"Until we wake them up I'd think," Brennan picked up the remote and turned the volume down on the television.

"Do we really want to wake them up?"

"Mine is drooling. Let's just leave them be," Padme laughed and turned to head back into the kitchen, the other ladies following her.

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"Wow, this room is awesome."

"Yeah, Bones calls it our media room. Dad says it's his man cave. I just think the TV is huge."

Parker's description was probably the most apt. The TV was nearly 150 inches and projection style, complete with surround sound. This room had been a gift to Booth from Brennan when they moved in. Hannah might have given him the phone he had always wants as a house warming present but Bones had given him nearly 12 feet of football.

She had decorated the walls with framed movie posters of his favorites. One wall was adorned with all the Star Wars posters, original and prequels. Another wall had Scarface and Lord of the Ring movie posters, along with a few old westerns. A third was dedicated to the Bond films, and Brennan had saved the fourth wall for sports memorable. She had grouped posters of the Phillies, Flyers and Sixers together with a shadow box holding a puck that had been autographed by Bobby Clarke that she had purchased off EBay. Booth's prized Vet arena seats completed the collection sitting against the wall. Brennan had spent weeks obsessing over every little detail of the room and keeping it a secret from Booth. She claimed that she disliked Booth's man cave but it was also the first room she showed visitors, quite proud of how happy Booth had been when she finished decorating it for him.

Russ' girls weren't nearly as impressed with the room as Russ and Jared would be when they were given the full tour after their naps but Emma's eyes had been instantly drawn to the shelves holding what seemed like thousands of games. "What games do you have?" She asked as she began to pursue the collection.

"Pretty much everything. There are lots of sports games, but you're girls."

"We play sports."

"You do?" Most of the girls Parker knew were decidedly non-athletic although he had to give Bones credit for her cannonball abilities.

Haley was sitting on the floor going through the collection of Kinect games stacked neatly in the section aptly labeled "Kinect." Bones had grouped all of the games together by manner of which gaming system they belonged to. They were currently up to four different systems. Brennan had no idea why they needed hundreds of games, especially since they seemed to play the same ones every weekend. She had however, became quite attached to and surprisingly good at Mario Bros for the Wii. Booth had caught her playing the game alone so many times that she had given up pretending that she didn't enjoy making her way through the levels to save the Princess.

"Bones says that Mario and Lugi don't speak proper Italian."

"Why do you call Aunt Tempe Bones?" Hayley wanted to know.

"Cause Dad does."

"Can we play the tennis game?" Emma made the suggestion and neither girl bothered to inform Parker that they had both made their school's all district team that year. Losing three matches to none left Parker tired and frustrated but would begin to prepare him for having a sister with the competitive drive of her mother.

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"What are you doing there?" Max was returning from a trip to the bathroom and noticed Booth standing, staring out the bay window in the master bedroom. They had a beautiful view of the stream that ran alongside the eastern edge of their property, but at the moment Booth wasn't appreciating the scenery.

"Just looking at this ring that Pops gave us," Booth was holding the ring with a pensive look on his face.

"Tempe doesn't want it?"

"She does. Well, she says she does, she just doesn't want it yet."

"She loves you Booth. She's scared."

"I know. But I don't know how to convince her to trust me. It's like some days I think she does; I know she does, but then other days she's suddenly freaked out again."

"A lot changed pretty quickly. This time last year you were with that reporter and Tempe spent Thanksgiving alone. She wouldn't go with me to visit her brother. She said it was an 'unimportant holiday with no real cultural significance that causes the needless deaths of thousands of turkeys.'"

"That sounds like Bones."

"Look at her now. She's so excited about today. It's my fault Booth. The last time Tempe felt safe was as part of a family, I took that away from her. She's afraid to get too comfortable again. And I think that's why every time you think that she's totally in, she backs up a little. It gets too real for her."

"I keep trying to remind myself of that."

"Her mother wasn't much different. I proposed four different times before she finally said yes. She said she didn't want to give up the last of her independence, even if she was in love with me. She eventually gave in, and so will Tempe."

"You know I told her I wasn't going to propose. That I was going to wait on her."

"She told me. But uh, if she proposes then how are you going to ask me for her hand?"

"I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that Bones doesn't find that necessary."

"Yeah but you're an old fashioned guy."

"I am. Wait, are you saying you don't want me to marry Bones?"

"Of course that's not what I'm saying. It would just be nice to be asked. I knew something was up with the two of you when we went undercover at the bowling alley."

"We," Booth emphasized the word, "did not go undercover. Bones and I went undercover, you went as yourself."

"Well, let's not mince words, okay."

Booth's smile faded and he sighed as he looked back down at the ring.

"Dad," Parker shouted as he whipped around the corner and into the master bedroom.

"Whoa, no running in the house, what's up?" Booth stood to catch Parker as he nearly collided with their California King bed. Booth thought the bed was too big but Brennan insisted it would be necessary for proper co-sleeping with their daughter.

"The girls beat me at tennis but I told them there was no way they'd win at football, especially if you're on my team. Will you play with us Dad, please?"

"Yeah, go get the ball bud, I'll be right there," Booth put the ring back on his nightstand.

As Max watched Parker take back off down the hall he placed a reassuring hand on Booth's shoulder, "She'll come around. I know she will. Just give her time. Come on, I want to play football too."

"Are you sure, I don't want to hurt you old man," Booth slapped Max on the back and grinned.

"As the kids say, 'bring it on.'"


	5. A Very Boothy Thanksgiving

_Author's Note: Thanks for sticking with this story! Again, I really appreciate everyone who has spent the week with Brennan, Booth and their families and I hope that you all of you who celebrate enjoy spending this holiday with your families. Please check back after midnight tonight (eastern time) for a companion piece, "Temperance Brennan Conquers Black Friday." Happy Thanksgiving!_

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When they were kids, Brennan and Russ would spend hours sitting on the swing in the backyard of their home in Chicago. It was where they'd had some of their most meaningful conversations. Like when Brennan was three and Russ taught her how to write words in the sand beneath the swing with a stick. Or when Russ was sixteen and he told her about his first sexual experience.

When she was in foster care that swing was one of the things she had missed the most. She knew it was irrational to miss an inanimate object but some of her most cherished memories had been made there. That's why when she saw the oak swing hanging from the back porch of this house she knew that she had to have it. She could already picture Booth swinging with their daughter, singing out of key. Booth however had taken one look at the large field the swing overlooked and proclaimed it "ideal for touch football games." Which is why, right now, she was sitting in the swing sharing hot chocolate and chatting with Russ, while Booth was playing ball with all the kids. And Max.

"Remember the year that Mom and Dad took us to Disneyland? You were terrified of Goofy."

"His head fell off."

"Yeah, I was a little afraid of him myself."

"I find that I'm remembering more lately. I blocked out a lot of those memories. They were too painful while I was foster care. It hurt too much to look back. And then, during college I was too busy and after it seemed foolish to try and recall them. But now, I, I find myself thinking about Mom all the time."

"I miss her too."

"Anthropologically it makes sense for me to want my mother around as I have my own child."

"You're going to be a good Mom."

"Thanks, but I still worry."

"I would think, anthropologically speaking, that it is a normal concern."

"That is true. However, it does not lessen my fear."

"You're great with my girls Tempe. And Parker loves you, it's clear that you're good with kids." His answer seemed to please her, and she was smiling as she watched the group playing in the yard. Russ hesitated before he asked, "Tempe, what is Parker to you?"

Confused by his question, Brennan's face squinted up. "Parker is Booth's son. Why would you ask me that?"

"I know he's Booth's son. What is he to you?"

"He is the son of my partner. Well, my more than partner, he's -"

"You don't even know how to define Booth. First degree relationship Tempe. I'm your brother. Amy is your sister-in-law, without using anyone else's name, what is Parker to you?"

"Why are you doing this Russ? I don't have any way of stating that without using someone else."

"Exactly," Russ could tell that his sister was growing frustrated by his question and he decided to jump straight to the point. "Dad told me that Booth wants you to marry him but you said weren't ready."

"And you think we should get married because it would make the pronouns easier?"

"If something happens to Parker, if God forbid that child gets sick or hurt, you won't be able to help him. In certain situations you wouldn't even be allowed visitation Tempe. Actually in some situations you wouldn't be able to make decisions for Booth either."

Russ knew that she understood what he meant but she wasn't quite ready to concede. "I wouldn't need to make decisions for Parker, his mother or father would. And Booth made a living will after his brain operation. I am legally allowed to make decisions for him."

"What if Parker's Mom and Booth weren't around? What if you were the only one that could get to him? Would you want him to be alone because you're too stubborn to admit that marriage can be a good thing?"

"The probability of that happening is very low." Of course she'd try to logic her way out of the conversation.

"But it's not zero. I thought about this a lot before Amy and I got married. I know you don't need to prove to anyone that you love Booth but isn't Parker a good enough reason to make your relationship legal?"

As if on cue, Parker called out to her and waved from his position in the yard. She faked a smile as she waved back and hoped that he didn't notice the emotions speeding behind her eyes.

"I don't want to talk about this Russ. We were having a very nice day." Not giving him time to respond, she grabbed the coffee cups they'd been using and ran back into the house. Russ kicked a pebble that was laying on the porch and wished that they could go back to when conversations didn't carry such heavy meanings.

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After Brennan went back inside, Russ joined his girls and together they beat Booth, Jared and Parker at another round of touch football. Emma stuck her tongue out at Parker and Hayley did a victory dance. Booth insisted that they lost because of a lack of communication between the three Booth men. Russ told Parker to get used to the idea of having a little sister around who was a poor winner.

Booth took the kids inside for an after game snack. He hoped there was pie left. Russ and Jared continued to toss the football around, it was well after dark but the backyard was lit by what seemed to be an industrial strength street light.

"I get the impression that you and Booth aren't very close."

"He's a good brother, but he has trouble being a friend."

Russ caught the pass Jared threw and returned it, "Sometimes it's hard to separate the two."

"You and Tempe ever have that kind of trouble?"

"She didn't speak to me for almost fifteen years because I thought I was being a good brother. But we're close now and we always were as kids. I'm glad to have that back."

"Well, maybe me and Seeley will get there someday."

"Your brother is a good man. Nicest guy to ever arrest me."

They shared a laugh as Jared threw another pass, "We are certainly an interesting mesh up of a family. Leave it to my brother the law man to fall in love with a woman from a notorious crime family."

"That was our issue, it was never Tempe's."

"I know. Your sister is an amazing woman."

"Yes, she is. She's also a very good cook. You up for some leftovers?" Russ tossed the football back toward Jared who responded that he was always ready to eat.

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Football games, both professional and pick up over, leftovers eaten and put away, the guests prepared to leave. Except for Max, who would be spending the weekend.

"Temperance you pulled off a very nice holiday. I can't wait to see what you do with Christmas," Padme said as she hugged Brennan.

"Thank you, although I prefer not to celebrate Christmas until the spring I suppose I'll have to give in to tradition."

"I am not going to ask what you mean by that," Jared laughed as he gave Brennan a kiss on the check. "It was nice to meet all of you," he directed at Russ' family as they were also preparing to leave.

"See you Jared," Parker exchanged fist bumps with his uncle.

"You guys drive carefully. I'll meet you for shopping at five Padme?" Amy said as she shrugged into her coat.

"I can't wait."

"I will be staying in bed with Booth instead."

"I have the most reasonable one of them all," Booth laughed and pulled Brennan into his side.

Jared and Padme left with Russ and his family following close behind. "I didn't mean to make you mad sis, but think about what we talked about, okay?" Russ whispered into Brennan's ear as he hugged her.

"I will. I love you."

"I love you too."

Brennan bent down to give goodnight hugs to her nieces. "Goodbye girls, remember to email me your requests for Christmas presents before the 11th."

"I'll make sure that they're properly edited and proof read," Russ said as he helped Emma into her coat.

"That's not funny Russ."

"Yes it was Bones." Booth noticed Parker engaged in a staring contest with Brennan's oldest niece. "Parker," he scolded.

"What?" He decided to play innocent.

"Tell the girls good game and that it was nice to meet them."

"I did have fun, you two play sports really well for girls."

"You don't play too bad for a boy either," Emma offered her fist for bumping and Parker happily obliged then proceeded to repeat the ritual with Hayley.

Goodbyes were exchanged all around and the family began to file out the door. Booth shook Russ' hand and asked him if they'd like to take Max with them.

Russ assured Booth that he'd love to but there just wasn't enough room at their house leading Booth to remark to Brennan, "I told you we should've went with the smaller house."

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It was nearly midnight when Booth dropped Hank off at the center and returned home to find Brennan and Parker laying in the bedroom watching cartoons and eating pie, both already changed into their sleep clothes.

"Hey, I thought you said there wasn't any left?" Booth frowned at the pie tin sitting on the bed between Parker and Bones.

"And I thought you said you would be gone longer," Brennan offered him the bite that was on her fork. Seeing that it was the last of the pie, Booth took it and gave Brennan a disappointed look. "Don't blame me, blame your daughter."

"The baby has been kicking Dad, it's so cool. Bones let me feel."

"It is pretty cool," Booth plopped down between them on the huge bed. "So did you two have a good day?"

"I suppose," Brennan had yet to decide if the day was successful or not. The green beans had been cold, the yams too sweet for Hank, and she thought the guys had taken way too long of a nap.

Parker on the other hand had came to an entirely different conclusion. "I think it was the best Thanksgiving ever. Even if we did get beat at football by a bunch of girls."

"I think it was a pretty great day too. Now you better go to bed, it's way past your bedtime."

"Ok Dad, goodnight," he leaned over his Dad to touch Brennan's belly one more time and was excited to be rewarded with a kick from his sister, "That is so awesome. Goodnight baby, goodnight Bones," Parker jumped off the bed and spirited down the hall to his bedroom. Angela had painted a space mural on two of his walls which Parker had also declared "awesome."

Booth took a cue from his son and rubbed Brennan's belly. "Wow, that is pretty awesome," he said as he too was rewarded with a kick.

"I can't wait to meet her," Brennan smiled as Booth climbed back out to bed to change into his lounge pants and T-shirt. Brennan got out of bed and took her and Parker's dishes back into the kitchen, returning to find Booth settled under the covers.

"Why was today so important to you Bones?" He asked as Brennan turned the lights off and joined him under the covers.

"Because it was the first meal I'd cooked for such a large group, and it was our family in our new home."

"Yeah, you said all of that, but I think there's more to it."

"You'll think that I'm silly."

"I'd never think that."

"This is the first year I've celebrated Thanksgiving since I was fifteen."

"That isn't true Bones," he started to recount his memories of spending the holiday with her in the past but became quiet when he realized that he couldn't think of one single year that they'd spent the day together.

"My parents left a few weeks before Christmas, which means they left a few weeks after Thanksgiving."

"And you haven't enjoyed Thanksgiving since then," it was a statement not a question, Booth knew her well enough to see where this conversation was headed.

"It was the last happy memory I have of all of us together. I didn't see any reason to celebrate after they were gone. Even after all these years. But this year, with the baby and the timing of buying the house, you wanted to have Thanksgiving here."

"Is that a bad thing?"

"Not necessarily."

"Then why are you so worried?"

"I think irrationally that, part of me at least, was afraid that if I did something to mess today up, that you wouldn't want to spend any more holidays with me."

"Bones, that doesn't sound like you. You know me better than that."

"I told you, it's irrational. Maybe it's the hormones, I don't know, but I just couldn't shake the idea that today had to be perfect."

"You know that nothing is ever perfect."

"I thought that maybe today could be."

"Bones-" Booth began to try and reassure her.

"I thought that if we weren't the perfect family, that maybe I didn't deserve a family at all."

"We," he pointed at a picture of them with Parker that hung on their bedroom wall, "and her," he pointed at her belly, "Are a perfect family. A perfect little family unit. Mom, Dad, brother and sister. The rest of them," he waved his hand in the air to indicate the rest of the house, "are insane. But, that's how it works. Immediate family equals perfect, extended family equals comic relief."

"Just the four of us, huh? That's all that has to be perfect?" She squinted at him, trying to determine if she had correctly understood his equation.

"Yep, we're going to do big things baby but-" Brennan scrunched up her face as he spoke, "I think you should wear the ring."

"But I haven't asked you to marry me yet."

"Are you saying that you're going to?"

"Yes."

He picked the ring up from where he had left it earlier and handed it to her. "Wear it. It can mean whatever you want it to. Today was amazing Bones. That was our family. The good, the bad and the ugly. Together. Let the ring mean that you're a part of this family."

She slide the ring down her finger a smile spreading across her face as she watched it shimmer in the light of their television. "Maybe we can wait until after the baby is born to actually get married?"

"If that's what you want," Booth pulled her against him. He used his thumb to rub the diamond on her hand, enjoying the feel of it and its implications.

"I've kind of always wanted to get married on a beach," she said as she cuddled closer to him.

"I thought you hadn't really thought about it."

"I have," she whispered as if it was the most precious secret she'd ever had.

"The beach sounds nice Bones," he was already imagining them standing on the sand saying vows to one another. He tilted her face toward him and kissed her. "I think we ended up having a pretty good day."

"Yes, I think that we had a very Boothy Thanksgiving."

The End.

_Come back tonight at midnight to see "Temperance Brennan Conquers Black Friday." Thanks for reading everyone!_


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